Folding rocking chair



May 13, 1941. s. L. LONG FOLDING ROCKING CHAIR Filed Jan. 3, 1938 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 e [Jo/7 73 g; mt 2 s. L. LQNG 2,242fi8fi FOLDING ROCKING CHAIR Filed Jan. 3, 1938 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 r irfi May 113, 194i;

....... I WMH MI 1 1 x5 0% F. 2

May '53, 31%1. s. L. LONG FOLDING ROCKING CHAIR Filed Jan. 3, 1938 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 z A I ZAVUJT May 13, S. L. LONG FOLDING ROCKING CHAIR Fil ed Jan. 3, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet;

Patented May 13, 1941 tries FOLDING ROCKING CHAIR Sidney L. Long, Minnea Ruben W. Anderson,

polis, Minn, assigner to Minneapolis, Minn.

Application January 3, 1938, Serial No. 183,029

Claims.

My present invention relates to chairs of the rocker type and, more particularly, to a folding rocking chair especially well adapted for use on out-of-door porches, lawns, boats and various other places where a comfortable chair is desirable, and which wilhnot be seriously damaged if left out in the weather.

The object of the invention is to provide a folding rocking chair that can be very quickly and easily set up into a plurality of adjustments, in which the back thereof inclines in different positions. Said chair is of rugged construction and cannot collapse after being adjusted into any one of its various different positions. Furthermore, the construction of the chair is such that there is no danger of a person pinching his fingers when sitting in the chair and rocking, or when folding or unfolding the same. The improved chair, when not in use, may befolded into a very compact space and secured against accidental unfolding movement.

To the above end, generally stated, th invention consists of the novel construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and d fined in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the invention, like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a left side elevation of the improved chair adjusted to bring its back into its foremost position;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the improved chair, as shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the improved chair folded, with some parts broken away and other parts removed;

Fig. 4 is a left shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a detail view with some parts sectioned on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary detail View showing one of the steps in folding or setting up the chair when adjusted as shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary detail view principally in section taken on the line 1-1 of Fig. 2, on an enlarged scale;

Fig. 8 is a view in central longitudinal section showing the initial step in setting up the improved chair;

Fig. 9, which corresponds to Fig. 8, shows the chair, by means of broken lines, adjusted to bring its back into an intermediate position and, by means of full lines, adjusted to bring its back into its rear-most position;

side elevation of the chair, as

Fig. 10 is a View in central longitudinal section showing the chair adjusted into its reclining position, and also showing a foot-rest embodied therein; and

Fig. 11 is a plan view of the foot-rest and fragments of the adjacent portions of the chair.

The numeral lil indicates a rectangular skeleton base, a seat frame! I, and a back frame 12. Said base comprises a pair of longitudinal side members it, a front crosstie member 14, and a rear crosstie member i5, all of which are rigidly connected. At the four corners of the base H] are rubber feet It which hold said base just off from the support on which they rest, and these rubber feet also prevent said base from sliding relative to the support.

The rear end of the base i8 is curved as indicated at ll for a purpose which will hereinafter appear, and in the upper edge portions of the base side members 63, at the rear end portion thereof, are ratchet-like notches is having front, rear and intermediate pairs of open seats l8, also for a purpose which will presently appear.

Th back frame i2 comprises a pair of rocker arms 1'9 and top, bottom and intermediate crosstie members, in the form of slats 2G, 2! and 22 rigidly secured to said arms.

Said top slat 2G is on the upper ends of the rocker arms l9, which are cut obliquely and the slats 2i and 22 are on the upper edges of said arms.

The back frame 12 is of such width that its rocker arms l8 transversely embrace the base Ill with a free working fit therebetween. This back frame I2 is upwardly and rearwardly inclined and hingedly secured, at its lower end, to the base I0 by a hinge rod 23, which extends through aligned holes in the base side members 13 and rocker arms 19. Said hinge rod 23 is fixed relative to the base It] and the rocker arms l9 turn on the ends of. said rod which project outwardly of the base H).

The seat frame H comprises a pair of rocker arms 24, a pair of seat-forming slats 25 and 2B, and a hinge bar 21. Said slats 25 and 26 rest on the upper edges of the rocker arms 24 with the slat 25 at the extreme outer end portions thereof and with the slat 26 edgewise spaced rearwardly from the slat 25. The hinge bar 21 is on the under-side of the rocker arms 24, at the extreme rear end portions thereof, and which hinge bar and the slat 26 are rigidly secured .to said arms. By reference to Fig. 2, it will be noted that the back frame I2 extends between the rocker arms 24 with considerable clearance space therebetween.

The slat 25 is secured to the rocker arms 24 at its rear edge portion by hinges 28 for raising and lowering movements, and which rocker arms are beveled under said slat and normally support the same in a forwardly and downwardly inclined position relative to the slat 26.

Nut-equipped bolts 29, anchored to the slat 25 and working inapertures 30 in the rocker arms 24, limit the lifting movement of said slat to a position in which its under side is in the plane of the upper edges of the rocker arms 24, see Fig. '1. The purpose of hinging the slat 25 will presently appear. The hinge bar 21 is constructed and arranged to be mounted in any one of the pairs of seats I8 to hingedly connect the seat frame II to the base I and for adjustment toward or from the hinge rod 23 to vary the inclination of the back frame I2.

The two rocker arms I9 and 24 on each side of the chair are connected, above their point of intersection, by a link 3I pivotally attached at its ends to said arms. Blocks 32 on the inner face of the rocker arms 24, and blocks 33 on the outer faces of the rocker arms I9, hold the links 3| spaced from the rocker arms I 9 and 24, and which links work in the spaces between said rocker arms with sufiicient clearance to prevent a person from getting his fingers pinched between the links 3I and the rocker arms I9 and 24.

The seat and back of the improved chair are formed from a single piece of flexible material which, as shown, is a heavy canvas 34. This canvas 34 is secured at its ends to the outer ends of the two frames I9 and II by forming,

' in the ends of the canvas 34, loops 35 through one of which the slat 20 extends, and through the other of which the slat 25 extends. The canvas 34 is also supported by the slats 2| and 26 over which it loosely extends, movement of the hinge bar 21 on the base I0 and hence the forward endwise movement of the seat frame is limited by a single cable 36 which extends longitudinally of the base I I at the transverse center thereof.

One end of the cable 36 is anchored to the front face of the cross-tie member I5, and its other end is attached to the hinge bar 21 near the rear edge thereof. When the chair is folded, this cable 33 lies in a notch 31 in the top of the cross-tie member I and in a transverse groove 38 in the underside of the hinge bar 21. The forward swinging movement of the back frame I2 is limited by a pair of forwardly diverging cables 39, the rear ends of which are attached at 40 to the hinge bar'21 near the front edge thereof and in line with the cable 36, and their forward ends are attached to the rocker arms I9, as indicated at 4|.

It is important to note that the seats I8 undercut so that the hinge bar 21 cannot are be lifted therefrom except by a forward endwise.

movement to withdraw said bar therefrom. The length of the cable 36 is such that the. hinge bar 21 cannot be released from the foremost pair of seats I8 except by turning the seat frame II into substantially a vertical position to, put slack in said cable, see Fig. 6.

The chair illustrated in the drawings is capable of three different adjustments by shifting the hinge bar 21 in the different pairs of seats I8, but anynumber of adjustments may be had by varying the number of pairs of seats The forward cable 39, moves the I-8. When the chair is adjusted as shown in Fig. 1, the same is in a convenient position, for instance, when a person is sitting at a table. By means of broken lines in Fig. 9, the chair is shown adjusted into its so-called easy position, comfortable for a person when conversing or reading, and by full lines in Fig. 9, the chair is adjusted into a reclining position.

The mounting of the slat 25 relative to the slat 26 is important as it positions the same so that it will lie flat against the underside of the legs of a person sitting in the chair.

The improved chair, when folded, is substantially entirely within the plane of the base I0, see Fig. 4. In this adjustment of the chair, the slat 22 engages the base I0 and positions the rocker arms I9 in the plane of said base. At substantially the final movement of the seat frame II into its folded position, the hinged slat 25 engages the base I0 and is raised thereby, as shown by broken lines in Fig. 7, and this permits said seat frame to be positioned in the plane of the base I0, and at which time the slats 25 and 26 rest on the base arms I9 rest on the hinge bar 21. The links 3t, when the chair is folded, are also in the plane of the base I0.

To hold the chair folded, a headed pin 42 is inserted through aligned holes 43 in the side members I3, rocker arms I9 and 24, and link 3|, at each side of the chair, see Figs. 3 and 4.

To unfold or set up the chair, it is only necessary to take hold of the back frame I2 at the top thereof, and lift the same. This lifting movement of the back frame I2, acting on the seat frame I I endwise forwardly, and during the initial part of this movement, the hinge bar 21 engages the curved surface I1 on the rear end of the rides over the same and onto said base, where the hinge bar 21 will successively drop into the rear or intermediate ratchet-like notches I8 and be directed thereby into the respective pair of seats I 8'. To insert the hinge bar 21 into the front pair of seats I8, the seat frame I-2 must be operated as shown in Fig. 6.

The positive holding of the hinge bar 21 by the cable 36 in the front pair of seats I8 is highly important for the reason that when the chair is in an upright position, very little forward movement of the seat frame I I, when a person is getting into or out of the chair, would be required to release the hinge bar 21 from said seats To fold the chair, it is engage the hinge bar 21 pair of seats I8 and hold the same raised until it is rearward of the rearmost pair of seats I 8"; while the back frame I2 is being lowered, and during this simple operation, all of the parts only necessary to disfrom the respective of the chair fall into their folded position. When ment in a vertical plane, to the front end of a rectangular frame 46. This frame 46 includes a pair of longitudinal members 41 and upper and lower crosstie members 48 and 49, respectively, the former of which is on the upperedges of the members 41, and the latter of which is on the under edges thereof. Fixed to the rear ends of the longitudinal members 41 is a pair of hooks 50 arranged tointerlock with the hinge I0 and the rocker rod 23 and detachably connect the frame it to the base iii. The frame it is intermediately supported on the crosstie member M and is held in an upwardly and forwardly inclined position by the hooks 53 and binge rod 23. The contour of the frame it and the foot-rest M is of such proportion as to permit the same to be stored, when not in use, within the base Hi. When the frame 56 and foot-rest M are thus stored, the

hooks 50 rest on a rear member 5! secured to the under-side of the base if), and the foot-rest M, forward of the frame 46, rests on the hinge rod 23, and at which time said foot-rest is turned into the plane of the crosstie member it with its end portions resting on the longitudinal members 41, which hold said foot-rest against relative turning movement.

In the stored position of the frame M5, the crosstie member l9 is in the same plane as the member 5i and engages the same as a stop to limit the rearward endwise movement of the frame 46 into the base if and there is sufficient clearance between the foot-rest id and the base member it to permit a person to grasp said footrest when removing the same from its stored position.

It may be here stated that the chair shown in Figs. 1 to 9, inclusive, will, in actual manufacture, be provided with the crosstie member 5!. This crosstie member 5i does not add any additional thickness to the chair when folded, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, as it lies in the plane of the crosstie member 21.

By pivotally attaching the foot-rest A l to the frame it, it is free to move with a persons legs resting thereon, which are in flat contact therewith and thus affords a wide and comfortable support Without sharp edges. The open frame 46 makes it possible for a person to step therein to facilitate getting into or out of the chair.

When the frame lfi and foot-rest M arestored within the base ill, as shown by broken lines in Fig. 10, or attached thereto as shown by full lines, they always retain their set positions when the chair is being moved from place to place.

To remove the frame M from the base IE, it is only necessary to swing the same rearwardly to release the hooks 58 from the hinge rod 23 and then lift said frame to withdraw said hooks from the base it. The holes 43 in the several members of the chair are also extended through the longitudinal frame members ll to receive the pins 52 when the chair is folded and thereby hold the frame it in the base if].

From the above description, it is evident that the improved chair will not accidentally collapse when a person is getting into or out of the same, nor is it possible for a person to pinch his fingers while rocking or folding or unfolding the chair.

It will be understood that the invention described is capable of various modifications within the scope of the invention herein disclosed and claimed.

What I claim is:

1. A chair of the kind described comprising a base, a seat frame and a back frame, each having at each side of the base a rocker arm, the rocker arms of said two frames being hinged to the base in crossed arrangement, and links connecting the rocker arms of said two frames, said seat frame further including inner and outer cross slats on the upper surfaces of the outer end portions of its rocker arms, said outer slat being hinged at its inner edge portion to the seat frame and normally supported in a forwardly and downwardly inclined position relative to the plane of the inner slat and movable into the plane of the inner slat to permit said two slats to rest on the base When the chair is folded. 2. A chair of the kind described, comprising a base having a hinge seat, an upwardly and rearwardly inclined back frame including a pair of rocker arms pivoted at their lower ends to the base, a seat frame including a pair of rocker arms in crossed arrangement with the first noted rocker arms and having at their lower ends a hinge member releasably held in said seat, a link pivotally connecting the rocker arms on each side of the base and permitting relative endwise and edgewise movements of the two frames, said seat being constructed and arranged to hold the hinge member against removal therefrom, except by forward endwise movement of re seat frame, and a non-stretchable anchor member secured at one end to the base rearwardly of said seat and attached at its other end to the seat frame in offset relation to the seat engaging portion of the hinge member, said anchor member positively holding the hinge member against removal from the seat except when the seat frame is swinging upwardly and rearwardly.

3. The structure defined in claim 2 which further includes a flexible member attached at one end to the seat frame, at its rear end, and attached at its other end to the back frame which flexible member, together with said anchor member, limits the forwardly swinging movement of the back frame, said flexible member also moves the seat frame endwise forwardly during upwardly and forwardly swinging movement of the back frame from its folded position.

l. A chair of the kind described comprising a base having a hinge seat, an upwardly and rearwardly inclined back frame including a pair of rocker arms outwardly of the base and pivoted thereto at their lower ends, a seat frame including a pair of rocker arms outwardly of the first noted rocker arms in crossed arrangement therewith, said seat frame further including a hinge member connecting the respective rocker arms at their lower end portions on the under sides thereof, said hinge member releasably resting in said seat, and a link between the rocker arms on each side of the base and pivotally connecting the same with freedom for relative endwise movements, the rocker arms of the two frames and the links being constructed and arranged to be folded into the plane of the base with the free end portion of the back frame supported on the hinge member of the seat frame.

5. The structure defined in claim 4 in which each frame further includes a cross-tie member arranged to engage the base when the chair is folded and support the rocker arms of each frame in the plane of the base.

SIDNEY L. LONG. 

